In Lancaster, a sanctuary for a wolf pack

What: “We have a face painter and wonderful music and games for kids and food for sale, and we have lots of local artists set up to sell things they've done,” said Dawn Darlington of Wolf Sanctuary PA. “People can walk around at their own pace. Tour guides will station themselves with each pack. People can walk around from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and ask each tour guide about the wolves.”

Nestled on 128 acres in Elizabeth Township, Lancaster County, the Wolf Sanctuary of PA houses wolves in need. Many of the animals were kept illegally as pets and come from several states.The idea of the evil wolf isn't founded in reality, Tompkins said, and several volunteers at the sanctuary agreed.Wolves aren't bloodthirsty devils, they said. Quite the opposite, they are intelligent, family-oriented predators who avoid conflicts with humans. Even the soft click of a camera shutter can send one of the animals scurrying for cover, looking back only after putting distance between itself and the photographer.The wolves at the sanctuary are not being domesticated, nor are they being prepared for release in the wild, said Dawn Darlington, whose parents started the nonprofit sanctuary 30 years ago."Our wolves are captive-bred," she said. "They're too used to people feeding them. If they were out in the wild, they'd approach someone thinking they were going to feed them."Wolves, once common in Pennsylvania, are absent now, said Travis Lau, a Pennsylvania Game Commission spokesman. The coyote, which immigrated here, has taken its place."Wolves are generally considered to be native to Pennsylvania, but they are long since out of existence here," Lau said.In 1683, a bounty was placed on wolves, and it continued into the early 1900s. Under that system, the wolf was eradicated from the state, Lau said.So, the only chance of hearing their haunting howl in the night will be if you're within earshot of the sanctuary. The 42 animals that live behind the double-wire fence will be cared for until they die."It's all about them," Darlington said. "It's about their comfort. We wouldn't do anything to endanger the lives that are here."There's work to be doneDarlington was 3 years old when she made a bold statement to her grandmother: "This is my house."

"And I guess she said OK," she said. "When I was ready to come back it was still waiting."

Darlington's grandparents had moved to the property in 1941 and stayed until 1988.Before returning to Pennsylvania in 2005, Darlington attended college and worked in California. The house sat vacant for those 17 years.When she returned, she renovated the house, opened a bed-and-breakfast and spread the word about the wolf sanctuary."This is always my home," she said. "This is what I'll be doing. This was always the goal to be back here. Everyone should have a goal, something they work toward; this is mine, and there's still a lot to be done."When she started renovations, Tompkins offered his help. The two knew each other from childhood, and after working together on the property they realized they worked together well. Eventually, their working relationship became a personal one.Educational opportunityThe sanctuary is divided into several large runs, and the wolves are separated by packs. Darlington has plans to expand the sanctuary and eventually provide more educational opportunities, but those plans are on hold until they have more volunteers and funding.For now there are about 25 volunteers and three part-time employees at the sanctuary and bed-and-breakfast. The volunteers help keep lots clean, weed, chop meat for the wolves and help run the gift shop.Patti Binkley has volunteered with her husband, Denny, for about eight years. A jack-of-all-trades, Patti helps out wherever she is needed.She can still remember the first time she stepped into one of the lots with the wolves. She was apprehensive about going in."They're wild animals," she said. "When I first started I didn't want to go in."Not all volunteers go in with the wolves. They must first complete 500 hours of training and volunteer time, and undergo an evaluation. It takes a calm personality to be with the animals.Binkley had a favorite wolf, a white and gray female named Smokey. The desire to get closer to the animal convinced her to go on the other side of the fence. To get there, she needed to pass through another enclosure that housed Thor, a blind wolf.With her husband behind her, and promising to stay there, Binkley slowly walked into the enclosure."Are you still behind me?" she asked her husband."Yes," he replied.She asked a few more times, and then she felt a painful nip. Thor had initiated her.Binkley reached her hand back slowly and brought it to her face, expecting to see blood. She was scared. If a wolf draws blood it has to be put down. There was none.It could have been worse. Wolves are capable of applying 15,000 pounds of pressure in a bite, if they want to."They can bite through a bone," Darlington said. "They sit down and crank on a deer leg. It's like you would bite through a potato chip."But Thor meant no harm.To her horror, Binkley realized she could feel her skin; Thor had bitten through her pants and her underwear. She tugged her shirt down, leaned backward and quickly left the enclosure.She can laugh about it now, and the other volunteers often tease her for it. In that way, the volunteers are like a family.Last week Tompkins got a call. There was a fresh roadkill deer on a nearby road. If they arrive quickly, the deer is given to the wolves. Tompkins prepared to pick it up."Do you need help?" Binkley asked him."Are you a licensed psychiatrist?" he asked with a laugh.Volunteers keep the sanctuary running. Donations do, too. Supporters can adopt a wolf. In return, they receive updates about them. One couple sends letters to Lazarus."We read them to him," Darlington said. "I don't know if he listens to me all the time, but I read them to him because they send it to him."There's a lot to be learned from wolves, she said."They're families," she said. "They stay together throughout their whole life. They'll support each other forever if they can."Contact Jamie Klein: 610-371-5016 or jklein@readingeagle.com.

Wolf body language

Wolves will strike a series of postures that reflect their environment. Here's how a wolf communicates through its body language:

Aggression: A wolf on the attack.

Defensive: The wolf feels threatened

Dominance: A dominant wolf pins another to the ground.

Passiveness: The wolf on the ground has assumed a passive submissive pose.